Album Review

The Prime Ministers were a staple of the Detroit club scene during the late '90s. This disc was mostly recorded in the absence of former guitarist Rock McClain. The band re-grouped as a trio and their music retained a solid hard rock presence. The disc starts off with the laid-back vocals of Todd Wicks on "Ron Wood," backed by the band's garage rock instrumentation. The extended introduction on the band's classic "The Saturn 7 Rock Hour (C'mon Commander)" adds a flare of showmanship to the already solid anthem. The band always had a stylish presence on-stage and in their music, and this disc adequately translates the energy and vision of the band, despite the absence of McClain. The tempo slows down on "Million O'Clock," with Wicks' vocals settling down and the guitar-bass-drum combination slowing down to a delicate pace. That song gives way to the jangly and charismatic "Breaking up the Band," possibly the best song to showcase Wicks' calm and soothing vocal style. Bassist Neil Friendship and drummer Joel Wicks provide ample rhythm throughout. The Last Days of the Prime Ministers was recorded at Michigan's Premier Sound Studio. The disc highlights the brief history of the band's power pop sound.

Biography

Genre: Alternative

Years Active: '90s, '00s

The modern-day power pop trio the Prime Ministers consists of members Todd Wicks (singer, guitar), Joel Wicks (drums), and Ned Friendship (bass). Hailing from the Detroit suburb of Rochester Hills, the group originally formed in 1996 and released a debut album, Last Days of the...